Birthday Present
by therealcaramel
Summary: REPOST of Birthday Present. Cagalli never liked birthdays. And when two years ago, she got dumped on that specific day, her dislike of the occasion only soared. Will the present she receives this year make her change her mind? ONE-SHOT. AU. ASUCAGA.


**AN: This is a repost of a fic I posted last year... Well kind of. The beginning is exactly the same, but I edited the middle/ending and compiled my actual ideas for the multi-chaptered fic into a single one-shot. It's totally AU, and the characters might be a little OOC, though I still tried to keep them in character. In any case, alcohol and love always tend to render anyone OOC, right??  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own GS/GSD/Johnny Depp. I wish I did though. lol**

* * *

I despise birds.

Well don't get me wrong. I'm not like an animal hater or anything… Okay, let's say that I don't really despise them. But then, those little creatures can be _terribly_ annoying.

I mean, each and every day, at exactly 5.30 a.m., they'd start to chirp. Hell, 5.30? Aren't they evil?

Anyway, I'm usually not _that_ irritated by them… I mean, to look at the brighter side of things, they're way cuter than an alarm clock, right? And though they've kinda been driving me insane with all those vicious morning _tweet tweets, _I rarely feel those murderous surges I am feeling today.

The thing is that today is somewhat different… How? Well, today, I'm having a major hangover. Oh, no, I'm not an alcoholic. I just wanted to know what it felt like to be wasted.

By the way, you know what you hear about alcohol, the whole 'it makes you forget' thingy? Well, that's total bullshit! You only end up with a bad headache, which birds with their freaking chirps, only help to intensify. Damn them.

In any case, I only drink rarely. And I almost never frequent bars. But yesterday was also different. I had really thought that alcoholic drinks, when consumed in large amounts, would help me forget.

About what, you may ask? Well, that this _son of a_ – hm, sorry about that - that my stupid ex-boyfriend left me exactly two years ago for some kind of dumb _younger_ bimbo. Oh, don't worry, I'm already over him. Really, it was no big deal; he just made me feel _old, fat _and _ugly_ for a while.

_No big deal_.

Besides, I really didn't need a man like him… In fact, I don't even know why I agreed to be his girlfriend in the first place. Oh wait, I remember: peer pressure. You become kinda desperate when you realize that you're the only one without a significant other in your group of friends, right?

Yeah, okay, I admit that I'm still a little bitter… But seriously, couldn't that jerk have chosen another date to leave me? Because, you know, there's always some kind of sullenness which remains when you're dumped for a younger woman, right? And you like, always feel bad on that date, right?

Well, that idiot dumped me on my birthday!

Not that I had actually loved birthdays… I mean, I never really understood the whole fuss people like to make about getting _older_; about getting a little closer to their death. But at least I appreciated the gifts… and the cake. Right, _the cake_!

But now, even _that_ has a bitter taste…

SSSSSSSSSS

That's why, today, when I woke up with that severe headache, at the sound of those freaky little animals chirping joyfully, I was already expecting a nightmarish birthday, just like last year's or that before last year's.

And I was like, in a horrible frame of mind when I suddenly heard someone at the door. I mean, who would actually come to knock at my door at 5.35, on a Sunday morning, when obviously I wanted nothing else than to be left alone?

Definitely, a _party pooper_.

So, still in my nightgown, I went and looked through the peephole, dreading it to be my brother and his wife. Not that I can't stand them or anything. I truly love them both. But I was not in the mood _at all_ to see a lovey-dovey couple while I was getting older, depressing about my ex-boyfriend like a loser… and had already long told them – and all of my other friends, for the fact– to leave me alone today.

Well, it was neither of them, thankfully. Instead, standing in the doorway was our apartment complex's concierge, the old Thomas, whose face I couldn't see because of a huge bouquet of red roses he was holding… _Red roses_. Maybe I should have been alarmed by that.

But clearly thinking that it was a present from my brother or one of my other male friends, who certainly had not understood my 'no wishes, no gifts and no cakes' plea for today, I just opened the door with a sigh.

And without a glance at him, I grabbed the bouquet as I asked him – with all the softness I could muster at 5.37, which is basically _not much_ - to follow me to the kitchen since he was also carrying what looked like a cake.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Well, it was only when we reached the kitchen, and I finally turned around to apologize – you know, since I had been kinda rude to the poor guy - that I realized my mistake.

This man, who had just placed the cake on my kitchen table, was in no way the old Thomas.

I mean, except if the old guy's a shapeshifter like Mystique from _The_ _Xmen_ and had changed into some kind of _attractive_ young man, with dark blue hair and stunning emerald eyes - which is just _impossible_, right?

It hit me then. I had let a stranger in! _Oh My God_! And while my mind was screaming something like 'What if he's a rapist or a thief or a murderer?!' at the particular moment, I just found myself unable to react. I was like rooted on the spot by his charisma.

I know I should have been scared or something. Truthfully, I had not expected to feel what I was feeling, but having such a _hottie_ – hey don't judge me, you should just have seen his body - staring and smiling at you at 5.40 in the morning would be kind of overwhelming for anyone, right?

But then, he started to move forward, towards me and that was enough to make me snap from my daze.

Instinctively, I took a tighter hold on the bouquet which was still in my hand, and with a thrust, I pointed it at him, just like Johnny Depp would have done with a sword in that pirate movie, you know. But that did not put him off. I mean, he continued to move towards me, and with each one of his steps, I was also moving, but backwards… Unfortunately, I soon hit the kitchen counter, finding myself trapped in a corner.

Millions of 'what if' scenarios came to my mind then. And, I should probably have yelled, or maybe tried to escape when he finally reached me. But I just found myself being grateful that I was actually standing against the kitchen counter. Because my legs had turned into jelly when slowly, _very slowly_, he had started to lean towards me.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

His face was indeed a few inches from mine; enough to give me a smell of his cologne. And damn, he smelled _good. _Like spices and something else I did not recognize but definitely something very _masculine_ and terribly _sexy_.

That scent must have been what paralyzed my brain, making all my thoughts go blurry. Because soon, I had dropped the bouquet.

And then all I know was that my hands had found their way to his hair as he gently started kissing me.

And all I could do was to kiss him back, _eagerly,_ as his hands moved to my waist and he pulled me towards him.

SSSSSSSSSSSS

My arms were still around his neck when we finally parted. And while my mind was screaming things like, '_oh my God, you just kissed a stranger_' or even '_you're definitely crazy!_' when he brought his lips to my ear, nibbling at it softly before whispering 'Happy birthday' in that mellow voice of his, all I could do was to grin at him goofily as I replied by a lame 'thank you'.

After that, it took me several seconds to steady myself and register what had just happened. He was still holding me tightly in his strong and muscular arms, somehow like he never wanted to let me go… And for a moment, I felt myself hoping that he'd indeed never let go.

But though my heart was still thudding loudly against my chest, my legs still trembling and well, my stomach still full of butterflies, the whole absurdity of the situation finally hit me. I had just 'invited' some sexy stranger in my apartment and had allowed him to kiss me.

The worst part was that I had actually enjoyed it…

Damn, I was definitely crazy but not _that_ desperate.

With determination, I therefore _softly_ pushed him away from me and tried my best to ignore the frown which consequently appeared on his brow.

"Who are you?"

I tried to speak in my meanest and most intimidating voice but, surprisingly the frown disappeared to be replaced by one of his swoon-worthy grins…

_Wow_. He had beautiful white teeth, I noticed, and a dimple, which I almost wanted to reach out and kiss.

Ugh. What's wrong with me?

Distracted, I didn't have the time to fight him before being once again wrapped against his chest, in the warmth of his arms.

"Your birthday present," he huskily replied, as if it was the most evident thing ever.

Since he was somewhat taller than me, I had to pull back a little to look up at his face. What had he meant by that? I took a good look at him… The cocky grin had evaporated, now replaced by a hesitant smile… If he had been sexy before, now he was downright gorgeous.

"What do you mean?" I finally asked, voicing my thoughts out loud.

But he didn't answer. He just stared at me as if I had just grown a second head.

Uh oh. Had I asked something wrong?

And it took me a few more seconds of our gazing session to finally understand. God, I could be so dense sometimes.

To say that I was now embarrassed would be an understatement. My 'friends' must have been the ones to have hired him. My birthday present. From them.

A _stripper_.

I gave him a once over. Yeah, that was definitely it. He had the looks; was sexiness incarnate. Plus he was wearing a black dinner suit at 5.45. Ugh, definitely a stripper. Maybe he had thought I had known about his visit. _Damn friends_.

Lost in my thoughts, I didn't notice that his smile had come back when he realized I was checking him out.

"Like what you see?" he chuckled, and I could have melted right then.

"I – I, huh," was my reply. God, he had turned me into a stammering idiot.

Breathing in to calm my nerves, I finally came back to my senses. While it would be tempting to watch him perform for the pleasure of my eyes, I didn't think I would be able to stop myself from jumping him was he to remove a single item of clothing.

Therefore, I did the most reasonable thing that I could have done.

"Huh," I started, eyeing him wearily, "I think it'd be best for you to leave… I'll just tell them that I loved your performance, okay?"

Seeing the confusion on his face, I insisted, "Really, I know they must have already paid you and all but it's really not necessary to, you know…" I trailed, hoping he'd get the hint and be grateful that I was sparing him from doing well, the striptease…

But unfortunately, he didn't. Instead he quirked an eyebrow, a confused smile tugging at his lips.

Did he really have to make it any harder?

"Look," I sighed, "you're very attractive, and God believe me, mouth-wateringly sexy. But as much as I am tempted to watch you strip down, I wanna spare you the trouble. So you don't have to stay. Just go, okay?"

There I had said it. And I was sure my face was as red as a tomato. Both from embarrassment and anger. Whoever had hired him was going to pay. Yeah, and in the worst way.

It was most probably Dearka. Yeah, that 'present' had 'Dearka' written all over it, maybe helped by that irritable Yzak. I was already plotting some Machiavellian well, plots in my head when I was interrupted by his laughter.

He hadn't moved, to my surprise, and worst, he was now laughing at me. _What was he waiting for? Did I also have to give him a tip?_

The volume of his laughter only increased at my thoughts. Oops, I hadn't meant to utter those aloud. _Kill me now!_

"No," he finally said a little breathlessly after calming down. "I'm sorry to disappoint but I'm no stripper, love."

What's with the pet name?

"My name is Cagalli." I said, glaring at him.

Then what he had said finally hit me. Okay, by now, you must all have noticed that I'm kinda slow. Anyway, if he wasn't a stripper hired by my friends… then who was he?

A stalker? A thief? A rapist?

Oh God.

SSSSSSSSSSS

I once again began to try and back away, fear apparent on my face.

That only made him chuckle as he once again began to approach me.

Tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, he said in a whisper, "You really don't remember, do you?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked, suddenly taken in by his gentleness. For a long moment, he just stared at me, running his fingers along my cheek.

"I should have known, you were too drunk yesterday…"

Uh oh! I had that strange feeling that he was going to drop a bomb like a 'we-were-both-drunk-and-decided-to-fly-to-Vegas-and-get-married' kind of bomb, you know. But unaware of my distress, he continued.

"I was also at the bar yesterday. You approached me, and declared that you had finally chosen your birthday present… me."

He stopped, still staring at my face in case I had remembered whatever lie he had been telling (ha! As if I'd do that, I know myself, okay?) and then continued when he saw no recollection of what he had just told me.

"Well, you began spilling all about yourself. Your name, your address, how Ahmed left you two years ago, how you've been feeling old, fat and ugly since then…"

Okay, maybe he's some kind of psychic. I glared at him but he only gave me another one of his smiles…

"You're the one who said it. Anyway, I was charmed and thought you were pretty straightforward. You said that I was your knight in a black suit, the one you've been looking for all your life, and then you kissed me. But I realized that you were somewhat inebriated when I tasted the alcohol in your mouth…"

Maybe_ he_ was the slow one. _Hello._ It took him the kiss to realize that I was drunk?

"Look, I'm sorry… I suppose you accompanied me back to the apartment and…" I trailed and suddenly blanched at the thought that we possibly…

Oh God. He was still his last night's clothes, according to what he had just said. And well, looking down at myself, I realized that I was wearing my most revealing nightgown, one I rarely wore anymore… One I didn't even remember changing into.

"Huh, did we… ?"

He shook his head and flushed a little at my question.

"No, you asked me to stay but... since you were more than a little tipsy," he stopped and I nodded. Okay, so we didn't. I sighed in relief. "I helped you to change though, and told you I'd be back first thing in the morning…"

"Oh, hm, I guess I have to thank you then…"

Awkwardness much? Ugh, I should have read that 'How to Deal with Awkward Situations' book Milly gave me last year.

"Yeah," he only replied before he bent and placed a swift kiss on my lips. "You could also thank me for the cake and the roses," he added.

"Why?" I could only ask.

I couldn't understand why he was doing this. Okay, so a drunken _moi_ had forced myself onto him. But he didn't have to respond, or act gentlemanly about it. Though my question was rather vague, he still understood its underlying meaning.

"Because you're captivating. I think I've fallen for you…"

I couldn't help it. I laughed out loud.

But the look on his face told me he was serious.

_Okay?_

"Don't make fun of my feelings, Cags."

"You're _really_ serious?"

"Yes."

Woah, he looked adamant.

"Look, I know that the situation is kind of unusual… I'm not usually that bold when it comes to this," he motioned his hands between me and himself, as if trying to explain what _this_ was… "Well, actually I'm never like that…"

He paused, staring at me intently.

"But, with you it's different; you're different. I mean, had any other girl said what you said, done what you did, I'd have brushed it off as a drunken stunt…"

I tried to stop him, to tell him that a drunken stunt as he called it, was exactly what _this _was. But he was _really_ adamant.

"Listen to me Cagalli, give us a chance. I'm sure you can also feel it."

If by _it, _he meant the overwhelming emotion that his simple presence in the room was stirring in me, then yeah, I definitely could feel _it_. Still…

"We barely know each other," I reasoned.

"We can work on that," he smiled, obviously seeing that my resolve against this whole thing was slowly dissipating. "Cagalli, there's a reason why last night you specifically came to me. It's called _destiny_, and I'm not going to fight it."

I smiled. God, he was one hell of a romantic. But…

"No buts," he said, as if reading my mind. Once again invading my personal space, he pressed another kiss to my lips.

Still staring at him, my headache long forgotten, it occurred to me that maybe, _just maybe_, my birthday would not be as terrible as expected.

"What's your name?" I asked looping my arms around his neck.

"Athrun," he said pressing his lips against mine, "your knight in a black suit."

I glared at him.

But he kissed me again before finally saying, "And your birthday present."

* * *

**Voila... Thanks for reading. ****Btw,** had it been written as a multi-chaptered fic, there would have been a funny little twist and the other characters mentioned would have actually appeared and well, it would have been a funny and romantic short fic... I think... Anyway, I know it's utterly cheesy and fluffy and kinda OOC... But please, review?? ******I'll give you a virtual hug if you do, or some virtual cookies, or some virtual chocolate, or a preview on the next Assignment chapter?? Anything, just ask :P Thanks!**


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